How can we bridge different knowledge systems when making decisions, policies and research that concerns reindeer husbandry? Join the live stream of a Nordic side event at LUKEs Reindeer and Fish Science Days August 27, 08.00–10.00 CEST.
The side event is a panel debate on traditional, local, and scientific knowledge, and how to bridge different knowledge systems for thriving livelihoods and well-functioning governance in reindeer husbandry. During this panel we will hear perspectives from Norway, Sweden and Finland on how to bridge different knowledge systems when making decisions, policies and research.
The debate is hosted by The Nordic Reindeer Committee, with Mika Survonen (president of the Nordic Reindeer Committee, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Finland) and Sirpa Rasmus (University of Lapland). Panelists will be: • Marja-Kristin Skum,reindeer herder and secretary at the Truth Commission for the Sami people in Sweden • Svein Morten Eilertsen, research scientist at NIBIO, Division of Forest and Forest Resources Wildlife and Rangelands in Norway • Sanna Hast, land-use specialist at the Reindeer Herders’ Association in Finland • Bruce Forbes, Research professor at the Arctic Centre, University of Lapland
Physically the side event will take place in Ylläs, Finland, but for interested who is not visiting the Reindeer and Fish Science Days, it will be live streamed August 27, 09.00–11.00 Finnish time (08.00–10.00 CEST).
Sign up by sending an email to to register for the online event and you will be sent a link to Zoom.
The kitchen manifesto for new Nordic food turns 20 years. It was celebrated with a workshop and a Nordic dinner in connection with the minister meeting in Karlstad. Photo: Frida Hagman, Länsstyrelsen Värmland
The purpose of the workshop was to pave the way for continued collaboration in food culture in the Nordic region. The Nordic region is a pioneer in sustainable food production and a reference internationally for a healthy food culture, and we want to work to maintain that position. The participants discussed which themes are important for the upcoming work. Among other things, the discussion touched values, competitiveness, proteins of the future and innovation.
The results of the workshop were then discussed at the meeting of the Nordic Council of Ministers for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Agriculture, Food and Forestry (MR-FJLS) on 19 June. The foundation was also laid for a dialogue that will be arranged in the autumn, and where many actors in various parts of Nordic gastronomy and food production will be involved. The dialogue will further elaborate the Nordic food culture for the future.
20 years of shared, Nordic food culture and collaboration must be celebrated properly! It was done through an evening menu by Christoffer Schyman at Matstudion in Karlstad, based on local ingredients and drinks in a New Nordic spirit. During the evening, speeches were given by Camilla Bender Larson, chairman of the steering group for New Nordic Food, and Judith Kyst, director at Madkulturen and representative in the steering group for new Nordic food. Christina Möller and Carl Jan Granqvist also spoke during the evening about the importance of gastronomy, the joint work with food culture and the importance of food enjoyment.
“Value Creation of Cross Border Cooperation for Field Trial Experiments”
This webinar aims to explore how cross-border cooperation can overcome challenges faced by smaller research projects, which might otherwise be overlooked, and how it can facilitate broader variety testing and screening. By working together, we can increase the size and diversity of our datasets, including a wider range of climatic conditions and soil types across the Nordic region.
Participants will have the opportunity to:
Present ideas for cross-border projects
Gain inspiration for new projects
Identify potential collaborators across the Nordic region
Learn from others’ experiences in managing cross-Nordic projects
Discover potential funding sources to support cross-border Nordic projects
Discussion Points:
Identifying research areas and applied field trial experiments that would benefit from a wider collaboration
Discussing the future of field trial experiments in this context
Leveraging the Nordic field trial system (NFTS) as a digital hub for data collection and analysis, fostering cross-border cooperation
Exploring innovative ideas for implementing cross-border cooperation, sharing data, and knowledge on technology and methods
The Nordic-Baltic region faces urgent challenges in reducing CO2 emissions, requiring a joint effort towards sustainable energy solutions. Leveraging bioenergy solutions emerges as a key strategy to meet emission goals. It offers the potential to diminish reliance on fossil fuels across various sectors including heating, electricity generation, and transportation.
Text: From the report “Bioenergy – Knowledge transfer in the Nordic-Baltic region for increased uptake of sustainable bioenergy”
Commissioned by the Nordic Council of Ministers and supported through the Bioeconomy programme, this scoping paper delves into the intricate landscape of bioenergy innovations within the region. Employing a mixed-method approach combining desktop research and interviews, the study identifies opportunities for further knowledge transfer activities in the Nordic-Baltic region.
A technology neutral approach is vital for knowledge exchange activities as highlighted by experts included in the study. The interviews moreover led to the following observations:
✓ Current biomass challenges are directly linked to geopolitical conflicts
✓ Bioenergy has to rely on by-products, low value biomass and waste
✓ Bioenergy innovations are required to be flexible
✓ Regional areas of excellence provide opportunity for knowledge sharing
✓ Nordic-Baltic strongholds lie in integrated systems of bioenergy solutions
✓ Nordic-Baltic experts would benefit from a cooperation platform and regional funding
✓ Universities are a useful meeting place for experts to build solutions for local contexts
The Nordic-Baltic region gathers a wealth of expertise and industry interest in biomass use for energy production. Additionally, the region showcases various integrated system solutions for bioenergy—knowledge that could be applicable to other areas lacking such comprehensive approaches. This context provides a fertile foundation for fostering regional knowledge exchange and facilitating the adoption of innovative practices. Yet, amidst geopolitical uncertainties and fluctuating markets, the need for adaptability and flexibility in bioenergy strategies becomes apparent.
In response to these findings, a series of recommendations are proposed for further knowledge sharing activities:
✓ Facilitating industry and academy interactions via a Nordic-Baltic cooperation platform
✓ Supporting existing networks active in the region
✓ Creating a Nordic- Baltic call to promote regional cooperation
✓ Identifying successful integrated local solutions for knowledge sharing
✓ Involving tomorrow’s talents: organisation of Nordic-Baltic hackathons
Nine new networks are granted funding from NKJ from 2024. The fokus of the call was all aspects of food and agriculture.
The NKJ board made a decision to fund nine new networks, during their last meeting in the end of February. The number of applications was all time high, and the number of funded networks also turned out higher than usual. The applications was of high standard and the networks highly relevant, and therefore the board found it easy to grant more of them.
The total sum shared between the networks is 2 500 000 SEK, which is much higher than usual, due to the large number of granted networks.
The focus of the call this time was broad and open for networks in all aspects of food and agricultural research. The aim of the call was to facilitate collaboration between researchers in the Nordic countries, increase synergies and bridge gaps between research and practice. And in the end, nine applicants was found responding best to the requirements.
Congratulations to all granted networks, and welcome to work for a sustainable agriculture sector together with NKJ!
Next chance to apply for funding for research networks from NKJ will be in 2025. Sign upp for the NKJ newsletter to know when the next call opens!
These are the new NKJ researcher network:
2024-01 Nordic network of agricultural data scientists
The NKJ co-funded networks Swedish Centre for Animal Welfare (SCAW) and Nordic Network for Communicating Animal Welfare (NordCAW) has arranged seminars and meetings during the past year.
The seminars and meetings have evoked discussions regarding the need for change in equestrian sports and what measures need to be taken in Sweden, the Nordic countries, and Europe as a whole.
Some key points from the activities are:
• the need for improved assessment and control of horses before and during competitions
• the need for change of focus from the horse’s head position, to how the horse carries itself
• the need for assessment of conflict behaviours during competition and warm-up
• training based on learning theories adapted to the horses’ condition and prerequisites
• need for changes on what and how equipment are being used
• To accomplish any kind of positive changes towards sustainable equestrianism it has also been stressed the importance of barriers analysis and collaboration between different actors, such as authorities, sports associations, veterinarians, academia and NGO’s. All have a different role to play, and all are needed for long-term change.
NJF (Nordic Association of Agricultural Research) got two observators in the NKJ board.
The two observators are Jarkko Niemi (LUKE), president of NJF, and Silvia Gaiani (University of Helsinki), secretary general of NJF.
It is the obvious similarities in target groups and research areas that has led to the collaboration between the two organisations. Collaboration can led to synergies and a more effective work for a sustainable future agriculture sector in the Nordic region.
In coming newsletters and updates in the NKJ social channels you will find information about joint events and projects! Sign up for the NKJ newsletter here!
The climate change demands adaption by the agriculture sector. Two workshops has been arranged by a NKJ funded researcher network, NordCrop, about the screening of existing genotypes for resilience that has proved that resilience traits is available in the current breeding material.
The two workshops were open for all stakeholders allowed discussion on future directions with a combination of invited international speakers and presentation from partners. Two PhD courses on applied crop physiology allowed for networking between young scientist from partner countries.
The results of the workshops can be implemented through stakeholders and the last years of fluctuations in the climate stresses the acute need to future proof the Nordic agricultural production.
The focus on the NordCrop network was in agriculture, with special emphasis on crop tolerance to stresses, both direct global change related and aspects of diseases and methods to detect stresses, but also genetic characterization and molecular biology. All these aspects are needed to cope with climate stresses and also support the green transition in the Nordic countries.
The Resilient Northern Crops Network (NordCrop) aimed to contribute to the establishment of a better understanding of the responses of field crops in the Nordic region to multiple abiotic and biotic stresses which has become a severe challenge to the food supply.
PLEN Living Labs at the University of Copenhagen in Taastrup welcomed students from Lars-Erik Larsson high school in Lund, to present research projects and the latest techniques. The goal was to create interest for the digitalised green sector – especially among the female students.
Scrolla ner för svensk text
The study visit was a pilot project and organized by NKJ and SNS in collaboration with the Nordic Testbed Network. PLEN Living Labs is part of the Nordic Testbed Network, which in turn is run by NKJ and SNS.
– When the evaluation is done, we will see if the students found it as exciting as we do! In that case, we’ll do it again, says Sofie Andersson, project coordinator at NKJ.
– The purpose is to broaden the students’ understanding of what it can mean to work in the bioeconomy and thereby increase interest among female students in choosing the currently male-dominated educations connected to digitalisation. The sector needs all the smart minds it can get, and then we can’t shut half of the population out! It’s important that everyone in society is represented by those who develop the future technology.
The students, at their final year in high school, were shown how the research is conducted and the purpose with it, but also how the researchers have ended up where they are today. They have all taken more or less crooked paths to their jobs with technology and research for the future green sector. The students themselves are just about to choose which path they will take towards their working life. Maybe they got new ideas about what they want to do after visiting PLEN Living Labs?
Sofia Isgar thought it was nice to get in direct contact with the researchers at PLEN Living Labs and find out more about what an education in the field of natural sciences can lead to.
– I probably knew that agriculture and forestry were quite unequal industries, but not that it is the same in research, she says.
The visit to PLEN Living Labs hasn’t completely convinced her to work in the green sector, but she is planning to go ahead with something in the natural sciences.
Follow the Lars-Erik Larsson students to PLEN Living Labs:
Swedish text
PLEN Living Labs på Köpenhamns Universitet i Taastrup tog emot studenter från Lars-Erik Larsson-gymnasiet i Lund, för att visa upp sin forskning och den senaste tekniken inom det gröna området – inte minst riktat till de kvinnliga studenterna.
Studiebesöket var ett pilotprojekt och anordnades av NKJ och SNS i samarbete med Nordic Testbed Network. PLEN Living Labs är en del av Nordic Testbed Network, som i sin tur drivs av NKJ och SNS.
– När utvärderingen är gjord får vi se om studenterna tyckte att det var lika spännande som vi tycker! I så fall gör vi om det, säger Sofie Andersson, projektsamordnare på NKJ.
– Meningen är att visa hur intressant den gröna sektorn är, inte minst för kvinnor. Sektorn behöver alla smarta hjärnor den kan få, och då kan vi inte stänga ute halva befolkningen! Det är viktigt att alla i samhället är representerade av dem som utvecklar framtidens teknik.
Sistaårsstudenterna fick höra om hur forskningen bedrivs och vad den går ut på, men också hur forskarna har hamnat där de är idag. De har alla tagit mer eller mindre krokiga vägar till sina jobb med teknik och forskning för framtiden i den gröna sektorn. Studenterna själva är i startgroparna att välja vilken väg de ska ta mot sitt arbetsliv. Kanske har de fått nya idéer om vad de vill göra efter besöket på PLEN Living Labs?
Sofia Isgar tyckte det var kul att få direktkontakt med forskarna på PLEN Living Labs och få veta mer om vad man kan göra med en utbildning inom det naturvetenskapliga området.
– Jag visste nog att jord- och skogsbruk var rätt ojämställda branscher, men inte att det är likadant inom forskningen, säger hon.
Besöket på PLEN Living Labs har inte helt övertygat henne om att arbeta inom den gröna sektorn, men något inom naturvetenskap kan det ändå bli till slut.
See the inspiration talks from the NKJ matchmaking day December 14th 2023! Scroll down for links
The matchmaking day was an opportunity to connect to researchers in the same area of interest and to get inspired. The focus at this matchmaking day was living labs and lighthouses, to connect to the main goal of the Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe”: to establish 100 living labs and lighthouses to lead the transition towards healthy soils by 2030.
At the matchmaking day we dissected how you as a researcher can utilize living labs and lighthouses. We offered an opportunity to connect with other researchers who are looking for collaboration opportunities. NKJ informed about the current open call.
The participants were also inspired by speakers from light houses and living labs in the Nordic region. See the presentations here:
The side event is a panel debate on traditional, local, and scientific knowledge, and how to bridge different knowledge systems for thriving livelihoods and well-functioning governance in reindeer husbandry. During this panel we will hear perspectives from Norway, Sweden and Finland on how to bridge different knowledge systems when making decisions, policies and research.
Find the report
